Of Moonbeams and Starlight 2
by raven lynn morrigan
Summary: After stealing the twins powers failed, Slade has some new plans and only needs them out of the way. And someone new is now interested in Raven. COMPLETE
1. Prologue

Announcing the results from the poll that was in my profile...this is the story that was chosen for its sequel to be written first.

Of Moonbeams and Starlight 2-Prologue

**Raven**** promised her brother she would try to find some sort of outdoor hobby. She thinks he better be satisfied with this one as she swims along the rocky shore around the tower late at night. She would never dare do this during the day and let her new secret identity be discovered. She pauses treading the water to stay afloat as she looks at her sparkly skin in the moonlight. Never would she have let it been seen if her brother hadn't come along. She tosses her wet hair back over her shoulder-she hasn't cut it since she got out of the infirmary after Adonis' last attack. The dark locks hang halfway down her back by now. She thinks maybe its finally time to cut it. She shivers in the quickly chilling night air,she's dressed on in the slinky outfit that Slade put her in. She silently curses under her breath-its been months since the night in the jungle and she still hasn't found away to reverse whatever spells he used to put it on her. The seemingly delicate diamond mesh work is too strong to break and too small to slip off over her developing womanly curves. As she reaches the shore and starts to climb out she is grabbed from below and drug back under water. She doesn't sense anything as she fights to get back to the surface. In her struggles her silver moon necklace comes off and floats to the rocky ocean bottom.****Raven struggles fircely to get away but she is dragged deeper and deeper underwater and farther away from the tower until she finally looses the battle to hold her breath.**

** Red X sits up suddenly having been asleep at his desk in the new building. Its all he can do not to scream his sisters name. His hand closes over his own golden sun necklace hidden beneath his shirt as he stands up. The door suddenly opens and little Saffire just stands there in the doorway of his office. He starts to ask her if she is okay but he stops. To his left what should be his shadow cast by the by the overhead lights can't possibly be there because there is nothing to give off a shadow. He glance back at the little girl to see her sign bye-bye to him. He turns back to the looming shadow only to be engulfed in darkness.**

**I'm still quite ill so I hope you will bare with me if this or any other story I'm still working on isn't updated regularly. As for the M rated stuff...I'm still not up to working on that yet.**


	2. Chapter 1

**Illness, writers block, etc have all conspired to keep me from updating regularly. The latest development in that lengthy list is that I see what I'm writing as a movie playing in my head and since I've been too sick to sit in front of a keyboard to type I've been entertaining myself. The problem being once I've come up with my little mind movie in its entirety I have no interest in sitting down at the keyboard to type it up. Since it is easier to come up with movies in my mind I just haven't been into writing as much as I once was. I'm going to try and finish what I have posted on here now and maybe still work on typing the older handwritten stories up but this one may very well be the final new story that I end up typing.**

Of Moonbeams and Starlight-part 1

Cyborg yawns as he makes his way to Raven's room early the next morning. He would still be asleep if Sarah hadn't called him and said that X was missing. He knocks on Raven's door, but there is no answer. "Yo, Rae! Wake up! It's about your brother." He knocks on the door louder this time but there is still no answer. Cyborg looks up as a groggy Robin walks down the corridor.

"Something wrong?"

"Sarah just called me from the orphanage. X is missing. His office was a mess and the suit is still there. I was going to tell Raven, but she hasn't answered me."

Robin snaps awake at the possibility that Raven might be missing too. "Maybe we should go in and check on her."

Cyborg cringes at the memory of the last time he and Beast Boy ended up in Raven's room, but he reaches up and presses the button to open the door. He steps back expecting to find an angry Raven at the door, but only darkness greets him. "Either she is a very heavy sleeper, or she isn't in there."

Stepping into the room Robin looks around for a light switch. He looks up as Cyborg steps in a few moments later and shines a light around the room.

Cyborg stops the light on Raven's empty bed. "She's not here."

"Is something wrong?"

Cyborg jumps startled by Starfire's sudden appearance.

"Please forgive me. It is early and I heard yelling."

Robin checks out the entire room. "Sorry to wake you, Star. We were looking for Raven."

"She goes out to swim late at night, but she's usually back by now."

Everyone turns to look at Beast Boy.

"You're up early."

Beast Boy turns to Cyborg. "Early? I haven't even gone to bed yet."

"We better go out to look for Raven. If something happened to X then she could be in danger as well."

The others follow Robin outside to the rocky shores of the tower. It doesn't take long for them to find Raven's discarded cloak, but there is no sign of Raven.

"She's never been out swimming this late before." Beast Boy looks up as the others turn to him. "She only goes out when she thinks no one is watching her. I've seen her sneak out a few times. I got curious so I followed her once."

Robin turns to Beast Boy. "Maybe you should check to see if she is still in the water. Star, Cy check the rest of the tower just to make sure she didn't go back inside." As Robin searches the rocky shore around the entire island he has a bad feeling that they aren't going to find Raven.

Beast Boy dives into the water and turns into a dolphin. He swims all around the island but there is no trace of Raven. He is about to climb out of the water when something shimmering on the rocky bottom catches his eye. He picks it up then surfaces, returning to normal. "Robin!"

He rushes over to Beast Boy who is climbing out of the water. "Did you find her?"

"No." He holds up the object he found. "Just this."

"Raven's necklace."

"I have never see her take it off...since we knew she had it anyway."

"Something's wrong...she must have been kidnapped while she was out swimming. X disappeared from the orphanage...someone knew exactly where to find the twins." Robin looks up as Cyborg and Starfire return.

"There is no sign of her inside anywhere." Cyborg looks at the display on his arm. "Her tracking signal is in her cloak and since she didn't have it with her I can't find her."

Starfire gasps as she recognizes Raven's necklace in Beast Boy's hand. "Oh, I fear something bad has happened to our friends."

Robin looks at all the others at a loss. "I just wish we had some sort of clue as to where to find them."

Beast Boy holds up the necklace. "Is it just me or is the necklace glowing?"


	3. Chapter 2

**I tried to find the names of Raven's three half-brothers online more than once and every time the search comes up a bust and I don't have the comics those three were in...so based on Season 4 episode 'The Prophecy' in which while following the symbol the Titans come up on four passage ways one with a bird (like the symbol on Raven's broach,) a snake, a monkey, and a bear. So I made up names based on those passage way symbols. (Laugh at the names-its okay I do it too. Just a little FYI fun fact. I got the name Viper from one of my cats who was named after the original American Gladiator.) As if it isn't complicated enough that means (Red) X/Apollo now has a third name to be referred to by. I've struggled, since the first story, with him having an animal based (like Raven is called Raven) name that the other Titans can call him, but I thought that would be too confusing so I dropped the Red and just had them call him X. And only the twins call each other by their real names. Only the other two brothers are going to use X's animal name. Okay now I'm getting confused...and the cat is back that kept that staring at me while I was working on the other story I managed to update this week. And now there are two of them...weird. They must think they're muses or something.

* * *

**

**Of Moonbeams and Starlight-part 2**

Raven awakens to find herself in a small cramped space-she barely has enough room to pull herself into a sitting position. As she feels around it in the darkness she realizes that its some sort of cage. She shields her eyes as a bright light turns on above her. She shies away from the two gruff looking men that hover in the shadows on the edge of the circle of light cast on the floor. Raven tries to speak but all that escapes her is a harsh series of coughs. Wherever they've taken her it is cold, musty, damp, her hair is still soaking wet and all she is wearing is that slinky diamond outfit. She sees that they both have similar symbols to the one on the broach of her cloak.

"Looks like the little birdy is awake." The smaller of the two men circles the cage taking a good long look at Raven. "She's a hot one for a half-breed. Too bad she's our sister."

"Sister?" Raven's attempt at speaking ends in another coughing fit.

The bigger man speaks in a gruff voice. "Trigon is our father. Unlike you our mother was a demon. For all our power neither of us were able to give the all powerful demon what he wanted."

"A way into your dimension. That's what you were born to do. I never imagined a half-breed could stop him."

"And if you could stop him...then why should we believe you wouldn't come after us?"

"I never-" Raven gasps scared as the smaller very monkish looking demon leaps on top of the cage. He has the same red skin, white hair, and four yellow eyes as Trigon.

"-knew about us? Is that what you were going to say little birdy? Do you really expect us to believe that? We were informed that you and your little snake in the grass twin were planning to take us down too."

"Easy Macaque, you're scaring the poor girl. Wouldn't want to make her unleash her powers."

"Oh yes, very bad idea..." The demon leaps onto to second cage and pulls back a cover. "...that is if you want dear little brother Viper to live." He leaps down off the cage. "Why don't you show her what's going to happen Kodiak?"

The last time Raven heard her brother referred to by that name was back on Azarath only their mother called them by their real names. She looks up as the larger bearish demon approaches her cage.

"Should you try to use your powers the energy will be absorbed by your cage and travel to his. And by the looks of him, I don't think he can handle much more." He holds out his hand and takes hold of the cage as he unleashes his powers.

Raven watches in horror as the cage her brother is in shocks him repeatedly. "Stop it!" More coughing stops her from protesting further.

Macaque reaches through the bars of Raven's cage-grabbing her before she can try to push Kodiak away. He wipes away a diamond tear that escapes from Raven's eye. "Look what we have here. It appears the old man wasn't lying about your special gift. Want big brother to stop hurting you're little twin birdy?"

"Yes."

"Then you better use that special gift of yours to make this little trip worth something."

More diamond tears fall to the floor of the cage as the two demons finally back away. "Do whatever you want to me...just don't hurt him...please." She collapses coughing again.

X feels like he is on fire as he briefly comes around. He sees two demons hovering over a cage that his sister is in but everything goes dark as the pain ends.

Beast Boy looks at the glowing necklace in his hand. "Its getting brighter." He turns around and it glows even brighter still.

Robin looks at the glowing necklace. "Turn back around for a second."

Beast Boy turns around and the necklace doesn't glow quite as brightly as before...but it gets much brighter as he turns back.

"It must be some sort of tracker."

"To what?"

Robin looks at Starfire. "Since its Raven's necklace, I would say X."

"Or his necklace anyway." Cyborg scans the necklace trying to find some sort of frequency he can track as well. "Lets just hope he didn't loose his too."

"And that Raven is with him." Starfire turns to Robin. "We must find where the necklace leads."

"Star is right lets go."

Slade watches the little girl sleep. She easily captured the twins before they knew what hit them. She did quite well for being so unfocused with her powers, even if she did drown Raven. It doesn't surprise him that the so called moon goddess nearly died. Her power is nothing compared to the one before him. He wonders briefly how the twins are fairing. He doesn't think that the braggart demon siblings can stop the twins, but he only needs them to draw attention away from his plans for the little girl. Why take over the world by force when he can get its very living embodiment to do it for him? He only wonders now should he call her Saffire or Gaea?

* * *

**Okay, so I'm sure you're all confused by Slade's museings on the little girl. In the last story Raven thought that she had powers like Melvin. She doesn't. Raven doesn't yet fully know what she really is...so how can she make sense of someone else like her? X does know what Raven doesn't, but he doesn't know that the little girl is like them. I know its confusing...but the part where all is revealed comes later. Now its just a teaser to leave you sctraching your head, wondering what the bleep I'm thinking, and make you want to come back for more to find out where this is going.**


	4. Chapter 3

**It isn't easy to write a story where Red X is Raven's twin and at the same time a separate one where he is the father of her twins. Maybe I should have considered that before I put up that poll asking which sequel to work on first.

* * *

**

**Of Moonbeams and Starlight-part 3**

Raven still cries but it the tears dwindle becoming smaller and smaller. She curls up wrapping her arms around herself as more coughs rack her body. It becomes so bad that she struggles to draw breath. Before it ends she begins to cough up blood. She collapses against the side of the cage exhausted.

The demon brothers watch their little sister. "Perhaps we just should have let her die."

The smaller demon looks up at his brother. "What would be the fun in that? She won't last much longer so why not let her suffer?"

Kodiak shushes Macaque and points to their little brother who begins to stir.

When X finally comes to he has no idea what's going on. He only knows that he hurts all over. He remembers seeing little Saffire standing in the door of his office and then the shadow...something wasn't quite right about that. It couldn't have been a shadow...it was solid...yet not at the same time. He wonders why little Saffire just walked into his office and attacked him. The sound of harsh coughing draws him from his musings and he struggles to turn his head to find his sister in a cage with small piles of her diamond tears around her. He tries to speak-beg her to stop that but before he can someone steps up to her cage and touches it. As pain surges through his body he can just barely make out Raven's screams for someone to stop it between her coughs. He feels like he is on fire and for one brief moment as the shocks stop it feels like his heart has stopped. It seems like an eternity before the shocks stop and his heart beats again.

Raven struggles trying to push the monkish demon away from the cage. "Stop it please!"

"Then you know what to do."

Fresh tears flow down her face as the demon backs away. She turns to her brother as he lies so still watching for some sign that he is alive. "Apollo..." She wished that there were some way to protect him.

It had been a full moon over Jump City the night before. As the sun begins to rise the moon moves very fast in its orbit-into the new moon position not stopping until it covers the face of the rising sun.

Robin stops the r-cycle and looks up at the sun that is just now beginning to rise. He has watched many sunrises and knows that there is something wrong with this one. As the sun continues to rise over the horizon what's wrong becomes very clear. "A solar eclispe...but the moon was full only a few hours ago. Raven...X...what's happening to you?" He takes out his communicator. "Star has the necklace lead you anywhere yet?"

Starfire takes out her communicator as she flies over downtown. She stops hovering in mid-air as she looks closely at the necklace in her hand as she moves it around. "Not yet, but it seems to glow most strongly in the direction of the pier."

"Then head that way. I'll notify Cyborg and Beast Boy. Let me know if there are any changes."

"Robin the necklace is glowing much more brightly than before."

He looks up at the eclipsed rising sun. "I expected as much." As Robin turns off the communicator he strongly thinks of insisting that everyone on the team get tracking implants. This isn't the first time they've been in this position and he wants it to be the last.

Across town in a secret base Slade too watches the eclipsed sun rising. A wall of monitors in the background play the various major news networks. Scientists are baffled by the impossible behavior of the moon by zooming ahead in it orbit while religious leaders declare it the end of the world. "So the twins aren't fairing so well after all." He looks up as the little girl enters the room. "You sense the disturbance don't you?"

Saffire walks over to the window and looks at the eclipsed sun. It looks pretty but a part of her doesn't like it and is even angered by it. She looks up at Slade and questions what is happening in sign language.

"The moon would dare deny you the sun's light." He looks down as she signs again. "Make her stop? I don't have the power to do that...but you do."

She looks up at the sun scowling for sometime before she signs again.

"Why didn't they tell you the truth about what you are? They fear the life that you have created and want to kill it. They couldn't do so if you realized what you were and tried to stop them."

Saffire looks up at Slade as soon as she met the twins she starting having dreams about not just them but many more of them from ages past and all questioned the existence of her children. They had given her the moon-Artemis to harbor it ages before and wanted to take it away just as her children were in their infancy, but she hadn't allowed it. She had stubbornly held onto her. Slowly but surely Artemis tried to slip away ever since.

"You know what I'm talking about, do Saffire?"

She signs that they tried it before...a very long time ago. She remembers that much. None of them were happy about it when she put a stop to it. If they were so concerned they should have given Artemis to Aries.

"Aries?"

Raven collapses against the side of the cage, suddenly exhausted but with no idea why she suddenly feels so weak. Some how a part of her doesn't feel quite so cold any longer...yet she still shivers from the cold damp prison she is in as she begins to cough again.

From far away another being watches the erratic behavior of Gaea's captive Artemis. He has wanted her for a very long time and now he intends to have her...but for now he has a few other matters to attend to. Gaea's children have been dumping their trash on him for much too long and he will not tolerate it anymore. A massive wind engulfs the entire world swirling ever faster until every last trace of trash is gone from the surface. Whirlwinds extend outward grabbing the orbiting junk then all of it is gathered and hurled back toward Gaea.

* * *

**Confused by the last part? Keep scracting your head it will be a while longer before I reveal all.**


	5. Chapter 4

**is someone out there working some freaky kind of mojo to get me to finish my Teen Titans stories that have been dormant so long? no? (its bad karma if you try something like that.) must be the funky new nail polish then-oddest thing i ever heard of as a muse though.**

* * *

**Of Moonbeams & Starlight 2-part 4**

By the time the Titans track down the twins its mid-morning. They gather in front of a warehouse on the pier.

Starfire hands Robin the necklace. "I believe this is it. The signal is most strong here."

"Let's go."

They rush inside the warehouse. Its empty save for two small illuminated cages. They stand back in momentary shock seeing the twins confined in them.

Starfire pries open the one Red X is in while Cyborg opens the one Raven is in.

Robin gets Raven out quickly. She is weak and struggling to breathe. As her eyes flutter open briefly he can see they are red and swollen from crying and he understands why immediately as he watches a tear slide down her cheek. It forms a trail of diamond dust and a small tear-dropped shaped gem. All of them that are piled up are progressively smaller. He catches one in his hand staring at it in awe at first and then anger as he thinks that this is why they were taken.

Raven focuses on Robin briefly as he slips her necklace back on her but her attention soon turns to her brother. "Apol-" She can't speak as more severe coughs wrack her body but she still tries to call out his name.

Robin takes off his cape and hands it to Cyborg and points to the pile of tears. "Gather those up-make sure you don't miss any. We can let anyone find out about that." He lays Raven down beside Red X.

Realizing what they are Cyborg grows angry as he sweeps them all up. It seems obvious to him this is why the twins were taken.

Raven rolls over on her side-reaching out grabbing her brother's shoulder and shaking him-trying to get him to wake up. Their necklaces touch fusing as one with the moon over top of the sun.

Quickly shifting forms Beast Boy suddenly growls low.

The two demons freeze as they return to the warehouse.

Robin turns to Cyborg. "Get them to the tower. The rest of us will handle this."

Later at the tower the others return to find the twins in the infirmary.

Cyborg has pushed the beds close together because of the fused necklaces. "I hope you gave those two the pounding they deserve."

"They got what was coming to them." Beast Boy looks at the twins. "I hope they're better off than they look."

"X took a bad beating from what I can tell. Raven though...was nearly drowned and it doesn't look like they cared anything about saving her. They are both lucky we found them when we did. Who were those guys?"

"Their older fully demon brothers." Robin looks over at Beast Boy who scoffs in anger.

"Rejects Trigon couldn't use as portals apparently."

Cyborg looks from Beast Boy to Robin. "So...what they just decide to come up from hell and get Raven to make them rich?"

Robin looks at the pile of diamond tears on the counter. "They thought the twins were out to get them for some reason and decided Raven could make them rich and then leave them both for dead."

"How did they know she could do that?" Cyborg scratches the human half of his head. "We didn't know until today."

"Would you want anyone finding out you could cry diamonds?" Robin turns to the twins. "Are they going to be okay?"

"Hopefully with time and rest. I didn't think it was a good idea to take those necklaces off them. So I moved the beds closer."

Robin looks out at the sun that is still being eclipsed by the moon. "I think that was a good idea."

Cyborg turns to look around the room. "Where's Starfire?"

Beast Boy looks up at Cyborg. "Making sure those two don't remember a thing about Raven's tears. We didn't ask how she could-we just left her to it."

Slade stands at the TV monitors watching the news networks. The Moon's trick of moving ahead in its orbit and consequent stopping to keep the Sun eclipsed hasn't been without its affects on the Earth. Earthquakes at the time of its orbit shift and higher tides in the direction it has stopped as well as half way around the world from that point as Earth rotates on its axis. And all of it fueling the little girls growing hatred of the twins. Things are working out even better than he planned. He pauses as he is about to walk away when more reports come on about trouble with NASA contacting its Rovers and satellites around Mars. "That must be the Ares the little girl was talking about." Slade is left wondering just what this Ares might be planning.

Ares in his humanoid form leaves his world and steps foot onto the moon of Artemis. He looks down at some of the junk left on her surface by Gaea's children. "Soon Artemis you'll have a new home where they won't bother you anymore. Unlike the brother that sent you away-I will protect you."

* * *

**poll question in my profile-two really but check out which ever one is displayed at the time your reading this and vote.**

**also i got a killer bbXrae multi-chapter story that i'm not gonna write first person to PM me and express interest in taking on that project gets it. but if you commit to it you gotta stick to the plot i wrote and give me the credit for the idea. and it comes with a bookcover already made.**


	6. Chapter 5

**Okay so I changed a few things. If anyone caught it the celestial bodies that Raven and X were originally supposed to be connected to was the sun and moon of Azarath (which I think I called Metrion and Zinthos in the first part)...but over the course of the first story that changed to the Earth's Sun and Moon (fyi Sol and Luna respectively if your interested in their names which pretty much are the words for sun and moon in another language. But now you know why its called the SOLar system and all things moon are referred to as LUNAr.) And now for the reason that changed in the first story...a nice little dream sequence I came up with for Raven (it comes later) that never got used in the first part. It was too good to just throw away. Now so it doesn't totally confuse you. The planets go by the Roman names (Mars, Venus, Jupiter, etc.) But since I started this with the Greek names with the twins I gotta stick with the Greek names for consistency...plus I just like those names better anyway. So that means Vulcan is Hephaestus (more on that later,) Mercury is Hermes, Venus is Aphrodite, Earth is Gaea, Mars is Ares, Jupiter is Zeus, Saturn is Cronus, Neptune is Poseidon, and Pluto is Hades. Uranus (Greek god of the sky and fyi pronounced your-un-us) is the only one that doesn't change...oddly enough. The exact Greek mythology doesn't line up with what I'm doing here though. Red X/Apollo/Viper will later explain my version for the sake of the story to Robin later so I'll leave the explanation for that point.**

* * *

**Of Moonbeams and Starlight-part 5**

It is weeks before Red X finally awakens. He immediately looks to his left to see Raven laying beside him in the other bed. He tries to sit up only to collapse.

"You might want to take it easy." Robin turns away from the TV on which Starfire left a documentary about the moon landings playing as she stepped out.

Red X looks over at Raven as she shifts restlessly in her sleep. "Is Art-is Raven okay?"

"Doing better than we expected her too." He glances toward the window. "I have the feeling that-which started after we discovered you both missing and hasn't stopped since has something to do with it."

Red X glances at the eclipsed sun then looks down at the fused necklace charms as something about them finally clicks in his mind. "Cronus."

"Is that who your brothers was working for?"

"Brothers? What brothers?"

"The ones who kidnapped the two of you. Fully demon offspring of Trigon. Given what we found out about Raven's tears we assumed that's why you both were taken."

"That's who those two were. I only saw them briefly between the electroshocks. Her tears how did they know she could do that?"

"All they would say is some old man told them."

"Cronus would never do something like that. He was the old man on Azarath that brought the necklaces to us as kids. Leave it to him to set up the stuff with the cave people so she and I would find out who we really were."

"Who are you really?"

"Stop pretending like you don't know."

"The mysterious Apollo and Artemis from the paper who sent the diamond donation to the orphanage."

"You forgot the myth part."

Robin looks up at the eclipsed sun. "You mean as in Greeks gods?"

"Sort of but you should watch how you say that around Artemis. She was always sensitive about that-better to say gods and goddesses." Red X looks up at the eclipse again. "She probably doesn't even know she's doing that. I don't even think she remembers anything about it yet. Some things began to come back to me after what happened in the cave and then I did some research and its all come back in a flood ever since. I thought it would be better to let her find out on her own."

"So...what? Are you trying to say that you two are the sun and moon?"

"It should have been impossible for us to have become Trigon's offspring. It doesn't work that way-not for us. That cult our mother joined must have been working some powerful magic to pull that off her getting pregnant not only by a demon but with the living embodiments of the sun and moon itself."

"Living embodiments?"

"Ever hear that song from the Disney movie about Pocahontas-all the parts of earth having a spirit?"

"One of Starfire's favorite animated movies-she used to watch it so much we all knew every line by heart."

"The younger kids at the orphanage love it too. Its kind of like that for us. We all have a consciousness and we can appear as humanoid if we want. There are Greek god and goddess myths for a reason. Only they must have made a lot of it up. Zeus isn't the most powerful in the solar system."

"I'm guessing that would be you."

Red X nods then looks over at Raven. "Of course there is the big guy-the Universe itself-over us all." He remains silent watching the TV for a little while. "I wonder what scientists would think if they knew the real story behind the formation of the solar system. I bet they wouldn't believe a planet could form as close in to the sun as Artemis did."

"Planet?"

"Earth-well Gaea didn't always have a moon. Artemis was my twin-small planet closer to the sun than even Hephaestus and he's so close even scientists haven't seen him yet. Unlike the rest of the planets she formed with me. The rest all came later from the leftovers."

"Hephaestus?"

"Vulcan if you go by the Roman version of the names. His planet is even closer to the sun than Hermes-or Mercury as you've probably heard it called all your life."

"Wow. How did she get to be the moon then?"

"Gaea's world held the promise of life but there are those not happy with their place in the cosmic pecking order that would have destroyed it out of spite. She needed a moon as a shield to harbor and protect it. No one else out there would do it."

"But Art-Raven did?"

"Eventually but even she didn't really want to." He looks at the TV as they show the moons cratered surface from many impacts. "And look at what's happened to her since."

As she tosses about restlessly Raven dreams of the chaos of formation protected by the sun. Its so warm she doesn't have to fear the cold of space most of these worlds will be subjected to. Until that is of all of them two showed potential for life. None would come forward to step up and harbor it. Gaea had better potential than Ares so when Artemis finally step up or down to moon status as it were-Gaea got her over Ares. Her once smooth surface was scarred by the many impacts that would have destroyed Gaea's developing children and how stuck now in the cold and dark Artemis had come to loath them. And now they reach out leaving their trash upon her taking pieces of her away even. The pitiful creatures that wouldn't exist without her-that she suffered for impact after impact-how dare they she thinks. Suddenly in anger Raven finds herself there upon the moon. She reaches out with her powers gathering everything humans have ever left upon the surface and flings it back toward Gaea. She also seeks out the parts of her they took away-even those flung onto the planet by impacts she has suffered over the years and return them to where they belong. When its done she stands there glaring Gaea. She jumps startled as a hand rests upon her shoulder.

"You should have come to me, Artemis. I would have protected you. I still can."

She turns to look-she doesn't recognize him-yet he seems so familiar. Finally a name comes to mind. "Ares."

Raven awakens with start-the name an inaudible murmur on her lips.

Red X turns to her. "Its okay rest easy now."

She looks over at her brother. "You're okay..."

"Thanks to you."

Robin looks outside as the necklaces the twins wear finally part. Its gradual but the daylight begins to brighten.

"No offense sis-but you look as bad as I feel."

"Gee thanks."

Robin turns back to them. "Its good to see you both awake finally."

Red X turns back to Robin suddenly. "What happened to all the diamonds?"

"They are locked up so tight that not even you should be able to get to them." Robin pauses before continuing. "I never asked how and frankly I don't think I want to know how but Starfire made sure neither of those guys remember that what happens when Raven cries."

"Kodiak and Macaque."

Red X rolls his eyes. "Of course they would be named something like that. Not that I liked it then-or do now for that matter-but it makes me glad that growing up I was saddled with Viper."

"How many names do you two have?"

Raven looks over at Red X. "You told him didn't you?"

"Do you really think the boy wonder didn't already know?"

"Thanks to you and your dumb Greek signature idea on the letter that ended up in the paper-I'm sure."

Robin shakes his head-those names explains the symbols on the last four tunnels they encountered when searching for the gem which turned out to be Raven herself. Bear-monkey-snake-and bird. "I think you two should save your strength for getting better. There will be plenty of time for you to argue later." Robin gets up to give them some time alone to rest.

Raven looks over at Robin. "What happened? I didn't sense any danger...nothing. I was just suddenly dragged underwater."

"Saffire."

Both Raven and Robin look at Red X. "Whatever happened in the office she did it. I fell asleep at the desk-many of the kids had come down with a stomach bug so I hadn't left there in days. I woke up suddenly sensing you were in danger and she was standing in the doorway and signed goodbye. Everything after that is a little fuzzy."

Raven shifts into a more comfortable position. "Why would she do something do something like that?"

"I don't know-but her powers have been getting stronger lately. It was supposed to be her last night there. She was adopted at first I had thought she just wanted to say goodbye but then something attacked."

Robin sits back down. "Adopted? By who?"

"I don't know it was a private thing the new legal team took care of."

Adopted indeed Slade thinks as he watches the feed from his hidden camera in the tower infirmary. He is the legal guardian of little Saffire and there is nothing that the Titans can do about it.


	7. Chapter 6

**Of Moonbeams and Starlight-part 6**

Later Red X sits up watching the TV as Raven sleeps. He turns the volume up as a news report comes on.

"More curious happenings related to the moon have been reported today. All moon rocks and dust brought back from manned missions to the moon suddenly vanished earlier today. Several witnesses working with it at the time are at a loss for how to explain it. One has been quoted as saying. 'One moment it was right there and the next it was just gone.' Pictures from space satellites also show that the once dark side of the moon that we were never able to view from Earth will be visible to us for the first time. While it lacks the impact provided by the dark sea like features scientists are excited about getting the chance to study a side of the moon they have only seen in photographs. New missions are reportedly already being planned at NASA and other space agencies around the world to visit this unexplored side of the moon."

"No!"

Red X looks over at Raven as she sits up. "You remember..."

"No more. I won't allow it."

"What did you do? We don't interfere with people remember?"

"Interfere? They were the ones interfering with me by dumping all their space junk. I never wanted to be here -I don't like it and I've been held captive ever since I came. Its so damn cold here."

"Artemis-"

"-If they set foot off Gaea they won't be coming anywhere near me again-I promise you that." Raven turns over in the bed and pulls the blankets up over her-refusing to discuss it further."

Red X looks back at the TV as the reporter continues.

"In other space news. Agencies have reportedly lost all contact with the orbiters and rovers on the planet Mars. Scientists are baffled as to why at this time."

He turns back to his sister sure that he knows now who put all the ideas about keeping humans away from the moon in her head. He might not like it that she ended up captive around Gaea after deciding she didn't want to be here but he isn't about to let Ares get his hands on her. As he turns off the TV and lays down he reasons that maybe its finally time to do what he should have long ago. Life on this world depends on a moon and if Artemis doesn't want to be that moon anymore he can force someone else to step up if he has to. He closes his eyes sending his consciousness out into the solar system.

Out here there is no Red X and no Viper-just Apollo. He by passes the asteroid belt simply because no moon like body is big enough for the job-unless it were Demeter but that is one that keeps all the asteroids pissed off at their bigger planet cousins so he doesn't even bother. It wouldn't be worth the attack it might provoke on the inner solar system. He heads instead out to what the humans call the Kupier Belt. _"Here me one and all. I came once before and no one would answer. I come to ask once again if there are any out there that wish to come forward as a moon for Gaea."_

_ "She has Artemis go away and leave us alone!"_

_ "Yeah get out of here!"_

_ "We don't need no stinking promotions."_

_ "Wouldn't wanna be with that snooty Gaea anyway."_

_ "Aren't those humans of hers the ones that sent them machines out here?"_

_ "Good riddance to those varmints."_

_ "Really Apollo? Must you start this again?"_

That last one Apollo recognizes as Hades and he has the urge to give him the cosmic equivalent of flipping someone off.

_"You're just upset the humans say you're no longer a planet you old wind bag!"_

On second thought he will will let Charon deal will Hades. Someone out here has to want to move up in rank. Those hopes quickly begin to fade as he listens to more of the chatter.

_"I do it."_

_ "WHAT!?"_

The cosmic gasp is nearly deafening. Red X looks as one distant world about 2/3 the size of Artemis moves forward.

_"I take it if Artemis no want job-better than out here with these full speed locos. I loco for no doing it before. But what these humans gonna think of a new moon?"_

Apollo breathes a sigh of relief. _"I don't really give a damn what they think or Gaea for that matter."_

_ "Just between you and me senor. I think she hot stuff-and if the rumors is true she really want to play that way-I let her hold me captive any day."_

Apollo turns to look back toward earth. _"You should move fast don't give the humans time to pick you up on their machines or else they might think you are on a collision course."_

_ "Si-very speedy I get it."_

_ "And be careful in the asteroid belt. They are even more loco than the rest of these."_

_ "Si-senor. You no worry. I be there in no time."_

Red X awakens to find Raven gone. He slips out of bed only to see through the window that she is outside. He quickly makes his way outside to find her clad only in her slinky diamond outfit with what looks very much like the bow she carried what time they spent on this world so long ago. She looks very much like a moon goddess standing there. Finally he speaks up after she draws back an arrow and strikes the target dead center. "You've still got it-even after all this time. Maybe I should warn the others not to piss you off now that you've taken that back up."

"I'm not in the mood to talk."

"Then I'll talk and you can listen." He cringes as her only response is to split the arrow she fired earlier in twain with another. "I just found someone willing to come here-to be Gaea's moon. You can come home when he gets here."

Raven lowers the bow as he continues.

"I'm sorry that I ever let you go. I never should have and wouldn't do it again if I had it to do over."

"Let me go?! I don't remember it like that. You begged me to do this cause no one else would. Finally I did come out here all the way into the cold and dark." She turns to her twin. "You would have ordered me to come if hadn't agreed all because you were caught up in being one of the few star systems out there to harbor life on a planet."

"If sending you to Gaea meant keeping you away from Ares then yes I would have."

Raven looks down at the weapon in her hand. "What if the people panic thinking this new moon is out to strike the Earth? They could fire nukes at it."

"No one will know what's happened until its over."

"And what about Gaea? Do you really think she's going to let me go?"

"I will make her if I have to. I should seek her out and let her know about this beforehand though." Red X picks up Raven's cloak that lays nearby on a rock and drapes it around her shoulders. He lingers there with his hands on her shoulders letting some of the vast warmth of the sun flow into her cosmic body."

"To finally go home after all this time..." Raven drops the weapon and buries herself in her twin's arms.

Red X holds Raven close to him. "Soon and then I promise I will never let you go again."

* * *

**i have no idea why the KBO new moon guy sounds like Speedy Gonzalez that is just the voice that popped in my head when i started writing it. i don't mean to upset anyone with that-it was just one of those things that seemed too funny not to run with at the time. in Close Encounter-another of my stories one of those characters sounded like Mel Brooks.**


	8. Chapter 7

**Keep in mind that the names Red X and Apollo as well as Raven and Artemis and also Saffire and Gaea may end up being used interchangeably due to either terrestrial or cosmic circumstance of the story at that moment and those characters are one in the same when that happens. we used to have an Apollo pizzeria here when i was a kid. dang it I'm hungry now-come back Apollo Pizza you had the bestest pizza in town-sorry i'm up late at night writing again. and my psychotic cat Cerberus chased away my editors-oh the irony of mentioning him in this of all stories.**

* * *

**Of Moonbeams and Starlight-part 7**

_Apollo tries to reach Gaea before the new moon gets here but she isn't answering him._

Saffire tugs on Slade's pant leg.

Slade looks down as she signs that Apollo is trying to reach her-in her head. "What does he want?" Slade watches as she signs something about getting a new moon cause Artemis wants to go home. "Do you want Artemis as your moon after what those two tried to do to you?"

Saffire stops and thinks that over for a few moments before she shakes her head no.

"Then tell them to go ahead you'll let her go." He watches amused as she signs again asking him how. "Think it. I'm sure he will hear you."

She places her hands on each side of her head and thinks really hard.

_Finally Apollo hears something._

_ "Fine she can go. Now leave me alone!"_

_ He thinks she has the same temper and anti-social behavior she always had._

"Apollo?"

He looks down into Raven's eyes. "She's going to let you go."

_Ares watches the approaching former KBO from the surface of Artemis. He isn't going to let Artemis go anywhere but straight to him once it gets here. He decides to cause a little distraction to keep Apollo occupied. __"Are we really going to stand for this?"_

_ Demeter is quick to chime in. "A moon becoming a planet and some out-lander taking its place as moon while we're all stuck as lowly outcasts-typical."_

_ Aphrodite speaks up. "Artemis was a planet long before she ever became a moon. If she wants to go back it should be her right."_

Raven looks up as Red X groans. "What's wrong?"

"Dissension in the ranks. Maybe you should go back up and rest now."

"I'm too excited to rest. I want to stay out here."

He sits down close by as she picks up the bow again. He turns his attention to quieting the masses before there is an uprising.

_Hestia speaks up above the din. "Apollo never let anyone else move around."_

_ "I offered long ago but no one out there would come forward as a moon to Gaea."_

_ "Some offer you never considered any of us."_

_ Apollo focus on Hestia and the other Asteroids. "Look at Ares they didn't do him any good."_

_ "Good!"? Ares really tries to incite the asteroids. "They've been doing nothing but trying to slam into me for ages."_

_ "If you gave enough of us a chance we could help you."_

_ Ares scoffs at the asteroids. "I highly doubt that." _

_ "If Zeus didn't have so much gravity we could have formed our planet."_

_ "How many times are we going to go through this Hera? I am in only one spot at any given time in my orbit. I couldn't affect the whole ring of you at once."_

_ "Everyone is just as loco up here. Apollo-I think I'm gonna need to move in closer than Artemis to have to the same effect on Gaea."_

_ "Do what you need to." Apollo turns his attention to the asteroids who are now bickering with Zeus. "If you want to form your own moon go ahead you can move to Ares, Aphrodite, Hermes, Hephaestus, or any other planet that will have you. Make your own planet if that is what you want-Zeus isn't stopping you."_

_ "They don't want to merge their identities into one single being or they would have already. They just want to place the blame for them not doing it on everyone else to hide that fact."_

_ So close to ending it-Apollo thinks briefly of tossing a CME at Zeus for that crack._

_ The newcomer speaks quietly to Artemis. "Your brother is kind of busy. I in place you can go home now."_

"Home...finally..." Raven looks over at her brother and then up to the sky."

_ "Thank you so much for this." This is the first time in ages Artemis has added her voice to the cosmic fugue._

_ "I glad to do it. You wouldn't believe how loco everyone is where I come from. I hope when they settle down it will be nice and peaceful up here."_

_ This is the moment that Ares has long waited for as Artemis leaves Gaea behind. With his consciousness shifted to an avatar that is on Artemis cosmic body he uses his influence to pull her toward his own._

Red X looks up as Raven suddenly cries out. "Artemis? What's wrong?"

"Don't let him please!"

He starts to ask what she's talking about but he us quick to realize just who it was that instigated the asteroids this time. "Ares."

_"Leave her alone!" He reaches out with his greater influence trying to snatch Artemis away from Ares clutches._

_ "You should have been paying more attention Apollo. I have her no and I will never let her go."_

Raven screams out feeling the tug of war between Apollo and Ares over her cosmic body that threatens to tear it apart.

Red X rushes to her. "I'm sorry Artemis-if I don't let you go for now he will see you destroyed before he lets go."

"Please don't let me go. I would rather be destroyed than be dragged out where its so much colder."

"I can't let that happen. I promise I'm going to find a way to get you home."

"No!" She collapses into his arms as he lets her cosmic form go.

_Ares pulls Artemis into orbit around him-swatting away the annoying asteroids that circle him to make way for her. "Finally after all this time you're mine."_

Raven tries to push her brother away from her as the other titans rush outside. "Let go of me!"

"Artemis-"

"How could you?" She gets up shuffling away from her brother only to collapse into the arms of Robin and Beast Boy.

As Saffire drifts off to sleep the voices of the cosmic chatter reach into her dreams. Something about Ares having captured Artemis. Saffire thinks the twins deserve it after what they tried to do to her.

Slade watches from the doorway as a cruel smile crosses her sleeping features.

Red X still sitting out on the shore doesn't even bother to look up as Robin comes back outside. "She must hate me now."

"If I understand what she's upset about before we sedated her then there was nothing else you could do. She's upset now but she will come to realize that in time."

"I was trying to find a way for her to come home and now look what happened."

"If there is anything we can do to help we will."

"I don't suppose you could convince the cosmic equivalent of a crazed stalker to let my sister go."

"Crazed stalker?"

"She was always aloof and unattainable. Guys just gave up on her but not Ares-it became his mission to have her and if wooing didn't work...well...he finally got her. I should have realized he would set up a distraction."

"Blaming yourself isn't going to do help in anyway."

"Perhaps I could be of some help."

Both Robin and Red X turn and look up at Starfire.

* * *

**CME is short for a coronal mass ejection-which is the sun spitting out lots of hot stuff into space.**


	9. Chapter 8

**after writing this i'm curious-i've got other open polls or i would pose it there but i'm wondering if something like this were really true and happened what would people think of suddenly finding when it started coming out of the new moon phase and into first quarter that there is a different moon out there and the old one ended up at Mars. i know none of that's possible but hypothetically speaking what's your reaction-review and let me know.**

* * *

**Of Moonbeams and Starlight-part 8**

Even sedated Raven tosses and turns in her sleep.

"_I vowed one day you would be mine and that day has finally come Artemis."_

_ "I don't want to be here. I want to go home."_

_ "This is your home now."_

After moving back inside while Starfire described her plan, Red X sits down heavily on one of the chairs in the lobby of the tower. "So you think you can move Raven's cosmic body away from Ares?"

"If you as they say-beat him at his own game."

"If you can distract him like he did you then Starfire might be able to slip in unnoticed."

Red X looks from Robin to Starfire. "But to push a moon? You really think you can do that?"

"There is no limit to my boundless confidence. Especially when one of my friends has been the target of wrong doing and my strength may be used to make it right."

Red X holds his forehead and groans.

"Are you okay? Maybe you need to go back and rest."

He looks up at Robin. "Other planets, moons, and asteroids are throwing back the space probes and landers that were put on or around them by humans."

"People should ask permission before doing such things. On Tamaran we do not even plant seeds for food without first asking the permission of our world spirit."

"Gaea never wanted her 'children' to know such things existed. I wouldn't be afraid to bet it was Ares who made her think we were out to destroy them what brief time we did walk among them. Maybe he thought if she hated me enough she wouldn't want my sister as her moon and he could steal her."

_ "Its too cold here. I can't stand this...let me go please..."_

_ "You'll get used to it my dear, Artemis. We all do."_

_ "You were born out here-I wasn't."_

_ "You really like to rub that in don't you? Act like you're something special just because you had the privilege of being born along side the sun as his twin rather than as his child from the leftovers?"_

_ "Is this really because I didn't flock to you like all the other women, Ares?"_

Cyborg looks over at Beast Boy. "Somethings wrong. Her temperature is dropping fast." He gets several blankets down from a closet. "Go tell X he may know what to do."

Beast Boy rushes out of the room as Cyborg piles the blankets up on top of Raven. He shifts into a bird and zooms down the stairwell. Everyone looks up as Beast Boy comes crashing into the lobby moments later. "Something's wrong with Raven. Better come quick."

_ "I could have had anyone but I only wanted you and now I finally have you. But no its more than that. I'm sick of your privileged brother who always gets everything he wants. Now you're one thing he can't have."_

_ "So you're really just jealous that he is the star and you're one lowly little planet."_

_ "Of that? No my dear. Gaea wasn't the only one who had potential! It could have been me with life if only he had sent you to me."_

_ "And you would've been a ruthless tyrant not content to sit back and let your own children be-you would've made yourself a supreme god and forced them to worship you. That was the good thing about Gaea-she stepped back and let hers become what they wanted. They have lives that mean something."_

_ "Wow this is some loco stuff." Gaea's new moon focuses on her. "But she right. You one sexy hot mama too!"_

Saffire sits up in bed with a start. Was all that just a funny dream or was it real? If it was as real as it felt like then why would Artemis say that about her 'children' if she and her twin Apollo mean to get rid of them like Slade says they want to?

Red X stands over Raven. "Its too cold for her out there. She wasn't meant to be that far from the sun's warmth and its starting to affect her physical body-it won't survive this for long."

"Then you must let me attempt to move her."

He nods as he places his hand on Raven attempting to transfer the sun warmth into her as he did earlier. "If you can I will forever be in your debt."

"No need Raven is my friend and I shall gladly help in any way I can." Starfire races out of the tower heading for outer space.

Red X takes a deep breath preparing himself to face Ares.

_ To get his attention Apollo sweeps up all the cast off space probes and landers floating toward Gaea that are now little more than piles of junk and sweeps them all together hurtling them onto Ares surface to get his attention away from Artemis._

_ "Well if it isn't the golden boy himself."_

_ "Let her go you can have anyone willing to come forward as a moon. One did others may well follow suit now."_

_ "I don't want others. I only want Artemis. Already things are changing from her tidal pull. Plate Tectonics are restarting. Subsurface ices are beginning to melt into seas from the heat generated. Soon the magnetic field will be restored and you won't be able to strip away the atmosphere anymore with your solar wind. Once an ozone layer builds up your damaging rays will no longer prevent life on my world. And your precious sister will be mother to it all."_

_ "Let her go now or I will cast you out as rouge to wander forever if another star won't take you in."_

_ "Cast me out and I take Artemis with me. Do you really want to lose her forever?"_

_ "Rouge means you wander alone and you've been nothing but trouble." Uranus states._

_ Zeus quickly chimes in. "You will take her nowhere."_

_ Cronus speaks up. "To get out of the system you must first pass us."_

_ "And if you are sent out we will pull her from you." Poseidon adds._

_ Apollo keeps the pressure on hoping others will join in. "The big guys have spoken Ares. Now let her go."_

_ "Let her go you loco nutcase!"_

As more and more add their voices to the cosmic fugue Starfire slips in and begins pushing Artemis away from Ares grasp.

_When she is far enough away from Ares-Gaea's new moon lends his own helping tug to get Artemis away. "Come on hot mama. She was your moon for ages-the least you can do for protecting your 'children' is give her a helping hand."_

Saffire stands at the window to her room and looks up into the night sky torn-wondering just who to believe in all this. She holds her hands to her head screaming as she thinks.

_ "SHUT UP AND LEAVE ME ALONE!" Without realizing what she's doing with her outburst Gaea does indeed add a tug to her new moons pull to help drag Artemis from Ares._

_ "Hot sexy mama with a temper! That's the kind of loco I like."_

_ Ares realizes what is happening too late as Artemis is pulled from his grasp. "NO!"_

_ Apollo quickly reaches out pulling his sister back to him. "Thank you all for your help."_

Slade watches the TVs as scientists around the world are baffled at new satellite photos showing that Earth has a brand new moon and the old one seems to be hurtling straight into the sun. "The moon isn't the only thing that is going to change around here very soon."

When she awakens Raven looks up at Red X. "Its so warm."

"You can thank Starfire. She got you away from Ares with a little help from Gaea and her loco new moon."

"I'm home?"

"Home...finally...and I promise to never let you go again."

* * *

**i decided to cut this one as a finished story now after Raven/Artemis finally gets away from Ares and goes home because i've not fully decided what Slade has up his sleeve for Saffire and that wasn't the main focus of this story anyway-the planets thing was. cutting it here leaves another part with Slade's plan for Saffire/Gaea. but this is it for me and the Teen Titans for quite awhile as i work on some fan fics for other series i like besides this one. so OM&S3-Crashing Down 2 and the Darling Raven series won't be coming anytime soon or any other new Teen Titans stories from me when those are finally finished for that matter. s-10 and counting Teen Titan stories i will ever write left including the still unfinished Darling Raven-Darling Nikki 2 Computer Blue story that remains unfinished for now.**

**see my profile for details on how to find co-authored stories between my cousins and i. and that co-authored batch once they go online will include the sequel to Blood Lust once the cousin-working on the remainder of the old handwritten stories i think is too crappy to even bother rewriting-types it up and gets it posted.**

**poll in my profile-be sure record your answer.**


End file.
